Friday, May 29, 2009

“Rabbits aren't your bag, Roy.”

It has been awhile since I looked through the pages of the Obscure Octavo and that’s been something I’ve been meaning to correct. A recent movie rental reminded me that it was time to see what other fiendish beasts lurk within those pages. Since it’s Friday and most of my responsibilities are done for the week, let us turn to a random page…

“Attention! Attention! Ladies and gentlemen, attention! There is a herd of killer rabbits headed this way and we desperately need your help!”

Terror Lepuses appear to be gigantic specimens of the common rabbit, often growing to the size of bears (or wolves, depending on how big the scale models in the background are.) Once long ago, the terror lepuses were the experimental test subjects of an alchemist who sought to create a potion of growth that also imbued the drinker with berserker rage. Some of these test rabbits escaped into the wild, creating a breeding population that still plagues the world to this day.

Terror Lepuses attack with their razor-sharp teeth, which inflict 1d8 points of damage. They may also attack by leaping upon a target and pinning them to the ground with their great bulk. A terror lepus can jump up to 30’ away in order to overbear a victim. If this attack is successful, the victim must make a save vs. petrify or be pinned beneath the rabbit. Having successfully pinned a subject, a terror lepus automatically hits its opponent on the following and all subsequent rounds. A character pinned by a terror lepus may make a STR check each round to escape from underneath this furry mass of death.

Due to the changes wrought by the potion, terror lepuses are both carnivorous and nocturnal, seeking shelter during the daylight hours in caves, abandoned mines, labyrinths, or in warrens they dug themselves. When food supplies run low in an area, terror lepuses migrate to new territory where prey is more plentiful, often forming migratory bands numbering up to 100 individuals. They devour everything unlucky enough to cross their paths, rivaling only the mythical tarrasque in fear and destruction.

The foot of a terror lepus is rumored to have protective properties. Any single terror lepus has a 5% chance of possessing one (and one only) such digit. If severed and carried, the foot of a terror lepus acts as a ring of protection +1. However, should the bearer of this lucky charm ever encounter terror lepuses again, he will be singled out by the beasts as a target and bear the brunt of their vengeance. In such cases, terror lepuses never need to check morale and will fight until either they or the bearer of the “lucky” foot is dead.

3 comments:

I dig the origin story. It's the kind of thing I'd "blame" on a PC after magical (spell/item) research. Years later that same player maybe different character will be groaning when they ganged by a herd of giant fluffy bunnies. Great fun!

Who's to Blame

Despite having never been a professional adventurer, Michael Curtis has nonetheless deciphered cryptic writings, handled ancient maps and texts, ridden both a camel and an elephant, fallen off a mountain, participated in a mystical rite, and discovered the resting places of lost treasures. He can be contacted at poleandrope @ gmaildotcom